1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to spacecraft attitude control and, more particularly, to beacon-assisted attitude control.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various conventional tracking systems and methods have been described (e.g., see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,963,890 and 5,926,130) for beacon-assisted spacecraft attitude control. The acquisition range, transient response and offset pointing of these systems and methods, however, has often been found to be less than satisfactory and they typically fail to operate autonomously (i.e., they require assistance from supporting control systems).